Flexible metallic wrist-watch band



May 24, 1960 E. MORF 2,937,798

FLEXIBLE METALLIC WRIST-WATCH BAND Filed Oct. 51, 1958 United StatesPatent FLEXIBLE lVIETALLIC WRIST-WATCH BAND Ernest Morf, Beauregard 15,La Chaux-de-Fonds, Neuchatel, Switzerland Filed Oct. 31, 1958, Ser. No.771,141

Claims priority, application Switzerland Dec. 3, 1957 Claims. (Cl.224-4) This invention releates to flexible metallic wrist-watch bands.

Wrist-watch bands constituted by two attaching members for connectingthe band to the lugs of a watchcase and by a metal strip having its endsfixed to said attaching members are already known in the art. In theseknown bands the flexibility and the elasticity are due to rectilineartransversal identical and equidistant slots provided alternately fromeither side of said metal strip and extending from one edge of saidstrip to a distance from the opposite edge, which is approximately equalto the distance between two consecutive slots.

If wrist-watch bands of this type have a satisfactory resiliency andflexibility, the bands known have, however, the drawback that theirlength can only be adjusted by a skilled person.

,It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a flexibleslotted metal band of the type indicated above, which is arranged sothat the length of the band may be adjusted very easily by anybody whendesired without requiring any particular tool.

A further object of the invention resides in the fact that the flexiblemetallic wrist-watch band comprises in combination a pair of metalstrips slotted as indicated above and link means to connect said metalstrips with one another, said link means comprising at least a memberportion simultaneously engaged in a slot of either metal strip.

Still further objects of the invention will appear in the course of thefollowing description.

One embodiment of the invention and a variant are representeddiagrammatically and by way of example in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a. side view of said embodiment,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view to a larger scale of a part of the bandrepresented in Fig. 1, a link member being detached from the band, and

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a variant of the link members.

The wrist-watch band represented in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises twoattaching members 1, 2, forming each a hook 1a,'2a which can be engagedinto a lug (not shown) of a. watchcase. Once the hook 1a has been set inplace it is closed for instance by means of pincers so that the member 1is definitely fixed to its lug. On the contrary the hook 2a remainsopened so that the member 2 can be detached at, will from its lug andcan be attached thereto again, so as to open or to close the band forretiring the watch from or setting it on to the wrist.

Two metal strips 3, 4, arcuated as shown in Fig. 1 in order to have theform of the wrist, are fixed to the attaching members 1, 2,respectively. Rectilinear transversal equidistant and identical slots3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, are provided in the strips 3, 4. The slots 3a, 4a,extend from one edge of the strips 3,, 4, whereas the slots 3b and 4bextend from the other edge of said strips. The slots 3a,

- member 5 is then introduced into the slot 4a (and of.

Patented May 24, 1960 2 3b, and 4a, 4b are alternately provided fromeither strip edge. The remaining portions of the strips 3, 4 are thussinuous and accordingly resilient and flexible. As shown in Fig. 2 theslots 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b extend from one strip edge to a distance of theopposite strip edge which is approximately equal to the distance betweentwo consecutive slots. The slots 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b form thus transversalelements 30, 4c and longitudinal element's 3d, 3e and 4d, 4e extendingalternately on either side of the strips 3, 4, the transversely and thelongitudinally extending strip elements having substantially the samewidth.

- The ends of the strips 3 and 4 opposite those which are fixed to themembers 1, 2, are superposed and removably fixed to each other by a pairof identical link members 5, 6. As shown in Fig. 2 the members 5 and 6are made out of a cylindrical rod in which diametrically opposite andaxially extending grooves 7 have been provided. The members 5 and 6havethus an I section with a middle or web portion 8 and end flanges 9. Thelength 4b. In this case the longitudinal elements 3d and 4d, on

the one hand, and 3e and 4e, on the other hand, are also-coinciding. Inother words there must always be an even number of transversal elements3c superposed to a corresponding number of transversal elements 40. Inthe embodiment of Fig. 2 eight transversal elements 30 are superposed toeight transversal elements 4c. The.

course also into the corresponding slot3a) which is provided between thetwo last transversal elements 4c of the strip 4 and the member 6 issimilarly engaged into the.

slot 3a (and also into the corresponding slot 4a) which.

is provided between the two last transversal elements 3c of the strip 3.To enable that operation, the thickness'of the middle portion 8 ofmembers 5, 6, is some-;

what smaller than the width of the slots 3a, 4a, and the distancebetween the end flanges 9 (i.e. the width of grooves 7) is somewhatlarger than the sum of the thicknesses of the strips 3, 4. In order thatthe members 5 v and 6a're held in place the last transversal elements;(30, 4c) of the strips 3, 4 are somewhat bent out of the,

engage said plane of their strip so as to frictionally members.

Once the members 5 and 6 have been set in place, thestrips'3, 4 arerigidly fixed to one another and it cannot. be noticed at all that theband is made in two'pieces. T he members 5 and 6 do neither perturb theesthetical eifect of the band nor injure the wrist of the watch car-.

rier. These members can be set in place and removed without requiringparticular tools, since it sufiices to push them in either directiontransversely with respect to the strips 3 and 4.

Tests made with these bands have shown that one may superpose two to tentransversal elements 30, 4c of each strip. To avoid superposing agreater number of these transversal elements, which could bedisadvantageous because of the initial bending of the strips 3, 4, itsufiices to make strips 3, 4 of two different lengths. In combining thentwo long strips, a long and a short strip or two short strips together,it is possible to adapt the band described practically to every wrist.

Instead of members 5, 6 which extend only across a center portion of theband, one could also use link mem:

3 hers having a length equal to the width of the strips 3, 4. Such alink member is represented in the variant of Fig. 3. Its form is similarto that of members 5, 6, with the exception that the middle portion 11of this member 10, comprised between the end flanges 12, is cut out atone end so as to form a free space 13 adapted to receive the logitudinalelements 3e and 42 of the strips 3 and 4.

Although I have described in detail one embodiment and a variant of myinvention it should be understood that various changes in the shape,size and arrangement of parts could be resorted to within the scope ofthe appended claims without departing from or sacrificing the spirit ofthe invention.

I claim:

1. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, apair of members arranged each for attachment to a watchcase lug, a pairof metal strips provided each with identical rectilinear transversal andequidistant slots, and link means to connect said metal strips to oneanother, said slots being provided alternately from either side of saidstrips and extending from one edge of said strips to a distance from theopposite edge thereof approximately equal to the distance between twoconsecutive slots, said metal strips each having one end portionconnected to one of said members and an opposite end portion, saidopposite end portions of said strips being superimposed so that at leastone slot of one strip coincides with one slot of the other strip, andsaid link means comprising a link member I-shaped in cross section witha middle portion and two flanges, said middle portion being engaged in apair of coinciding slots and said flanges maintaining said metal stripsclosely in contact with each other.

2. In the flexible metallic wrist-watch band of claim 1, said linkmember consisting of a cylindrical rod provided with two diametricallyopposed and axially extending grooves.

3. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, apair of members arranged each for attachment to a watchcase lug, a pairof metal strips provided each with identical rectilinear transversal andequidistant slots, and link means to connect said metal strips to oneanother, said slots being provided alternately from either side of saidstrips and extending from one edge of said strips to a distance from theopposite edge thereof approximately equal to the distance between twoconsecutive slots, said metal strips each having one end portionconnected to one of said members and an opposite end portion, saidopposite end portions of said strips being superimposed so that theslots provided in one of said end portions from one side edge thereofcoincide with the slots provided in the other end portion and extendingfrom the same edge thereof, and said link means comprising a pair ofidentical link members each I-shaped in cross section with a middleportion and two flanges, the middle portions of said link members beingengaged each in the last slot of one of said end portions and in theslot of the other end portion coinciding with said last slot, saidflanges maintaining said metal strips closely in contact with eachother.

4. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, apair of members arranged each for attachment to a watchcase lug, a pairof metal strips provided each with identical rectilinear transversal andequidistant slots forming transversal strip portions, and link means toconnect said metal strips to one another, said slots being providedalternately from either side of said strips and extending from one edgeof said strips to a distance from the opposite edge thereofapproximately equal to the width of said transversal strip portions,said metal strips each having one end portion connected .to one of saidmembers and an opposite end portion having a last transversal stripportion, said opposite end portions of said strips being superimposed sothat the slots provided in one of said end portions from one side edgethereof coincide with the slots provided in the other end portion andextending from the same edge thereof, and said link means comprising apair of identical link members each I-shaped in cross section with amiddle portion and two flanges, the middle portions of said link membersbeing engaged each in the last slot of one of said end portions and inthe slot of the other end portion coinciding with said last slot, thelast transversal strip portion being bent out of the plane of said stripto engage frictionally one of said link member flanges, said flangesthus maintaining said metal strips in contact with each other.

5. A flexible metallic wrist-watch band comprising, in combination, apair of attaching members adapted to be attached, respectively, to apair of lugs of a watchcase; a pair of flexible metal strips fixed toand extending from said attaching members, respectively, said metalstrips respectively having distant from said attaching members elongatedfree end portions which overlap each other and at said free end portionssaid strips having respectively a pair of side edges which extendalongside of each other, said overlapping portions of said strips beingrespectively formed with a pair of coextensive slots extendingrespectively from said side edges transversely across said strips butterminating short of the side edges thereof opposite from saidfirst-mentioned side edges, and said overlapping end portions of saidstrips respectively having inner faces engaging each other and outerfaces directed away from each other; and an elongated channel memberforming a link for interconnecting said strips, said channel memberhaving a web whose thickness corresponds approximately to the width ofsaid slots and said channel member having a pair of flanges extendingfrom said web and spaced from each other by a distance approximatelyequal to the total thickness of said strips, said channel member beinglocated with said web thereof in said coextensive slots and with saidflanges overlapping said outer faces of said strips so that v the latterare held together by said channel member.

References Cited in the file of this patent FOREIGN PATENTS 213,052Great Britain Mar. 27, 1924 452,762 Great Britain Aug. 28, 19361,001,346 France Oct. 24, 1951

